Of HoneyWater and Flitterblooms
by MurtlapEssence
Summary: Lenore considers herself somewhat normal, at least until Severus Snape enters her life. Will she be able to help him move away from Lily or will he drag her down with him into his own despair? Rated for future chapters!
1. Ask for Darcy

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything except Lenore and a handful of unimportant shop keepers. XD**

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Lenore Del'Range wasn't much to look at, her long straight brown hair and chocolate eyes didn't attract much attention, and she wasn't particularly thin either. She didn't dress slutty, she wasn't mean, and she never had the urge to just visit somewhere. Lenore Del'Range was what she called average in every way except one; she was a witch. She wasn't the kind that had dishes that washed themselves, or even the kind that played Quidditch on the off day the urge struck her. No, she was just not that kind of person.

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Severus Snape, like most people, _hated_ Monday. He especially hated the first Monday of Summer Break, the day he would have to restock his own personal collection of potion supplies for his home. It wasn't that it was a difficult task by any means, but it required far more patience then he possessed even on his best of days. As of now, it was just after lunch and he had yet to finish even half of his list. Granted most of it could wait for at least two more weeks, but it was far easier and much simpler to get it all out of the way now. He had exhausted most of the shops in Diagon Alley (and Knockturn) as far as his list was concerned, and was down to his final shop left. He stopped in front of the black window paned door before pushing it cautiously open, nearly cringing as the bell on the door announced his entrance.

"Be right with you dear!" a plump woman with rather large greying hair called out before disappearing into the back of the store. Severus rolled his eyes, trying his best to keep calm as he browsed through the shelves bowing under their tremendous weights. He made note of the items he needed as he squeezed through the overcrowded isles filled with dragon scale gloves and crudely made cauldrons. He was reduced to this third rate shop, what was this world coming too? "Sorry for the wait!" the woman called out to him over the rows over shelves. "What can I help you with Sir?" she smiled warmly at him, which only earned an odd glance in her direction. Severus reached under his cloak and handed her what was left of his list before continuing his previous browsing as the woman looked over his list. "Ain't got much of it, only a few things. Quite a long list dear!" She laughed out, but it was not returned. The woman frowned and hurried off to fetch what he required and he simply returned to the front counter to wait. She rushed back and forth, climbing up and down ladders, carefully measuring out jars into smaller vials, or simply placing full jars on the counters. "Like I said, I ain't got much dear." She mumbled as she set his herbs and jars into a basket.

"I'll simply have to order them." Severus took a deep breath and exhaled to try to ease the growing frustration as she carefully calculated his order.

"Maybe not dear. It's two Galleons, one Sickle and nine Knuts." She smiled as Severus pulled out his pouch of dwindling money. He handed her the appropriate amount.

"What do you mean?" he asked taking his list back from her and carefully folding it back to slip back inside his cloak.

"Ah! Got your attention _now_ don't I?" She chuckled. "I don't do this often, so keep this to yourself." she grabbed a piece of scrap parchment from underneath the counter and hastily scribbled out an address before handing to him quickly. She leaned over the counter before looking around as if someone might be listening in the deserted shop. "Ask for Darcy. She lives in an old house at the top of that hill." she indicated to the parchment. "She'll help you get what'cha need." The woman winked at him before turning away.

"Thank you." he scanned the paper and if memory served him correctly it was a house not too far from his own. He picked up his basket and walked out of the shop, nearly cringing yet again as the door clanked out his exit. He walked further down the street and when he was completely alone he simply apperated home. After an hour he had entered his home, put everything up and was getting ready to leave once more. Such tedious work!

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**Just a beginning, feel free to message or comment. (I appreciate all criticism, so don't hesitate even if you think it might be mean.) Thanks for reading! **


	2. Flitterbloom's Potions and Supplies

**Disclaimer: I own only Lenore, the Kerchek family, and a handful of unimportant shop keepers. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling. **

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Flitterbloom's Potions & Supplies wasn't the sort of place most people visited. In fact most had never even heard of it. It certainly wasn't the sort of place Lenore ever saw herself working at when she was a child, yet here she was restocking shelves and placing orders to fill in the days to come. You see, Diagon Alley, with all of its finery was… expensive. They just simply couldn't afford the overhead, and in the long run it was just easier to run it out of Mr. and Mrs. Kerchek's house. Sure they didn't make much money, but Lenore had never minded that. In fact Lenore didn't mind the long hours and mostly sleepless nights either. To be simply honest she enjoyed the various people who stopped by for the odd herb or random emergency potions. She knew all of the regular customers by name, and after working there for two years, despite it being a small shop, it was quite a list. This is why she was so puzzled when the man dressed in all black with shoulder length black hair knocked on the door.

"One moment!" Mrs. Kerchek, Daisy if you knew her well, yelled as she raced downstairs, her feet thudding loudly on the rickety steps. Lenore watched as the woman dressed in her usual burgundy wizard robes whip her wand around, hiding their stocks and neat shelves with a glamour spell. With every flick of her wrist the shelves turned into couches and tables, armchairs and porcelain plates with tiny cats on them. "Lenore, go back to the kitchen unless I call for you." She waved her off as she hid the last bottle of Boom Berry juice under the glamour enchantment. Daisy began patting her wavy blonde hair back into place as she paced to the front door, and Lenore rolled her eyes only to follow at her heels, excitedly. "I thought I told you-" Daisy whispered, but shook her head. "Never mind, too late now." They had reached the door and Daisy opened it revealing the tall gentleman at their door. "Hello sir, I'm sorry but we don't want whatever you're selling!" Even when totally dismissing someone Daisy's plastered on smile never fell from her face.

"I was told to ask for Darcy." The man held a basket in his left hand and the other hid behind his back. His sharp piercing eyes seemed to look right through them both.

"Really now?" Daisy raised her eyebrow slightly, her smile becoming more genuine. "Well there isn't no Darcy here! Come in, come in!" she gently pushed Lenore back away from the door to make room for the man to squeak past them. "Thought you were from the Ministry!" she laughed before flicking her wand one last time, ending the glamour and returning the house back to its usual crammed mess.

"No, I assure you I'm not." He glanced around, his eyes continuously returning back to them before flitting off in other directions.

"Well, this is Flitterbloom's, I'm Daisy, and this," she paused long enough to jerk Lenore by her arm, who was abnormally quiet, closer towards them, "This is Lenore, she helps me run the place."

"Hello." Lenore forced a smile, abnormally nervous. The man, in her opinion was very intimidating. He stood straight, shoulders back, one hand still hidden behind his back. She looked a bit closer at his face as Mrs. Kerchek began spouting about what they sell. His face had a bit of coldness to it, something Lenore couldn't tell if it was due to stress, or if it was just natural sneer his mouth twisted into. His eyes were ever watchful, and Lenore was sure that he knew she was all but gaping at the poor man.

"We deliver, but only if you aren't too far away. Can't be caught by the Ministry you know." Daisy kept pouring her rules, much to the man's dismay. He had pulled out a small folded square of parchment, and Lenore reached out for it, her warm fingers grazing his cold ones briefly. Lenore forced a half smile and opened the list, frowning slightly at a few of the rarer ingredients, but nodded all the same.

"Sorry." She mouthed to him and rushed off to the back to see if they had any frozen Ashwinder eggs. Lenore entered the kitchen walked past the bubbling cauldrons and pushed open the heavy door to what Muggles would call the pantry. Her eyes quickly searched the room and she found the jar. She looked at the list again, most were fresh ingredients that she had in the green house out back. Lenore frowned again as Daisy's boisterous laughter filled the air. That poor man! Daisy was friendly, sure, but she talked your ear off if given the chance. (Despite most protests from the customers she talked away regardless.) Lenore tucked the jar carefully under her arm before pulling the heavy door closed and headed back to the main floor of this home/shop. If possible the man's sneer deepened since her excursion to the pantry. Lenore bit her lip, her chocolate eyes sending him a silent apology.

"That's why we would _never_ move to Diagon Alley!" Daisy laughed again, and Lenore felt a bit sorry for the woman.

"Excuse me, sir?" Lenore took her chance to save the man's poor ears.

"This is Professor Snape, from Hogwarts dear!" Daisy rolled her green eyes. "I know you've never been to Hogwarts, but this man is the best potions teacher in all of Europe!" Daisy smiled brighter then she had before.

"Professor Snape, sir, could you follow me to the green house then? I want to make sure that you get everything you need." Lenore moved forward and handed him his Ashwinder eggs.

"Oh, yes! Follow her! We don't normally let people in there, but for you!" Daisy was gushing, proud to have such a prestigious man in her house.

Lenore paced silently to the green house, enjoying the cool breeze as it wafted past, dreading the humidity of the green house. She made careful note of the potted plants they passed, including Flitterbloom's, which the shop was named for. They had chosen it because it was deceptive; it looked remarkably like Devil's Snare, just like the shop looked much like a normal home on the outside. She pulled open the green house's green plated glass door and let Professor Snape pass through first before following and shutting the door firmly.

"I'm sorry about her. She means well enough." Lenore said quietly before pulling a stool out for him to sit on. She placed it in the middle of the room. "I really didn't need you back here, but you looked irritated." She turned away and pulled on some gloves left on a rather crowded table. He didn't say much, nor did he sit down, but she didn't let that bother her. He obviously didn't want to converse, so she was happy enough to work in silence. She plucked Boom Berries, and cut the last of the Dittany. She crossed the room back and forth, cutting this, separating that, placing things in the basket he had brought, never once noticing that Professor Snape's eyes never left her. She returned to the middle of the room and handed back the list.

"How much?" He indicated the basket.

"I'm sorry, but the Nux Myristica won't be ready till next week at the earliest." Lenore ignored his question for the moment. "If you need more Dittany I won't have any for at least four months." Lenore took off her gloves and tossed them back onto the cluttered table. "The Boom Berries won't keep very long in the heat, and after this week I won't have any more fresh ones till next year." she shrugged.

"How much?" he repeated, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"Since the Nux isn't ready, I'll have to give you a _slight_ discount." she smiled and winked at him. "It'll be ten Galleons unless you ask Miss Kerchek, she'll charge closer to thirty if you do." He reached into his coin purse and fished the coins out before placing them on the table.

"Could you deliver the Nux Myristica when it's ready?" his voice was clipped, but Lenore didn't hold it against him.

"You'd have to leave your address, but if you send your list here, I can prevent you from having to make the trip." Lenore nodded and pocketed the Galleons without counting them.

Snape left his address with Lenore, silently hoping it would be anyone but Daisy who'd deliver his ingredients. That woman grated on every nerve he had.

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**I know it is still a bit short, but everything is still being set up. I welcome all comments good or bad- Thanks for reading!**


	3. Bezoar Stones

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Harry Potter series, nor the ingredients names, potion names, or wands. I do own Lenore, Mr. & Mrs. Kercheck, and an irrelevant shop keeper, the rest belongs to Ms. Rowling, and Warner Brothers respectively. The ingredients were found on the Harry Potter Wiki for authenticity only.**

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Lenore waved goodbye to the last customer she would see that day before Mrs. Kerchek all but waltzed into the room.

"We made a killin today!" she squealed as she danced between the isles, her usual burgundy wizard robes swirling and swishing around her. Lenore smiled at Mrs. Kerchek's good mood, even laughed when Daisy lost her balance and fell against one of the crowded shelves. "Don't laugh!" she whined before breaking into a fit of laughter herself.

"I have to leave a bit early; I have that delivery to make." Lenore smiled as went to the kitchen, still chuckling occasionally.

"Oh, I can do that dear!" Daisy yelled after Lenore. Lenore just shook her head.

"It's on my way home anyways!" she yelled back before opening the 'pantry' and pulled out the bundle of Nux Myristica she had picked this morning. She set it on the counter and made a mental note of a few things they were running low on before shutting the heavy door.

"Are you sure?" Lenore whipped around the see Daisy pulling bottles off of the counter and placed them in their respectful places in racks and on more shelves.

"Yeah, it isn't a big deal. I'll just swing by, drop it off, and head home." Lenore smirked as Daisy nearly dropped a vial of Moondew and she turned away quickly before Daisy saw her staring.

"Alright, well, why don't you go ahead and leave? I'll get started on the base potions for tomorrow." Daisy opened a random drawer and pulled out a set of Dragon Scale gloves.

"You sure? It won't take me long to do them." Lenore had already begun to unlock the cupboard where she'd stashed her bag only hours ago.

"Yes, yes. Just hide the store front before you leave." Daisy waved her off before pulling out her wand and floated several large pewter cauldrons over to the counter. Lenore thanked her quickly before taking her things and rushing to the living room/store. She pulled out her wand, an eleven inch Yew wood, with a Runespoor Fang core if you wanted to get technical, and quickly cast the required glamour and transfiguration spells. When the living room looked like an average over crammed mess of a living room, she dashed off to the bathroom just up the stairs. She pulled off her white uniform top and pulled on a grey t-shirt, as well as a light black jacket. She quickly pulled her hair out of its usual messy bun and quickly braided if over her shoulder. She slipped off her bulky work shoes and pulled on a pair of black ballet flats. Nothing fancy. She raced back downstairs after stuffing her bag with her old clothes. She came back into the kitchen, waved to Mrs. Kerchek, grabbed her bundle of Nux, stashing it carefully in her bag, and off she went.

Lenore lived only five miles (8 kilometers) away from Flitterbloom's, so she usually took her bike to work when it was sunny. She wasn't very good at Apperating, and barely passed her test is she was to be perfectly honest. She swung her black and grey backpack onto her back before claiming her red bike stashed under the porch and began her journey to the Professor's house. He lived only lightly out of the way of her usual route, and she figured that if she made good time she'd be home only a little after dark. First time in weeks she'd get home at a decent hour. She finally reached the street he lived on, and began counting the numbers as she flew past them.

"1310, 1311, 1312..." The further she went down the lane, the more unsure she was that she had the right street, let alone the right house she had come to stop in front of. It was a cookie cutter- two story house, just like the rest, but was in sore need of a coat of paint, just like the waist high wooden fence that surrounded the unkempt lawn. She got off her bike and opened the latch on the wooden gate, frowning as it screeched open, announcing her arrival. The walk way to the house was broken in some places, a handful of the cracks running through it spider webbing before vanishing, but still it was not in complete disrepair. She leaned her bike carefully against the porch before climbing the small slumping steps and knocking on the door with three sharp raps of her knuckles. She turned and looked at the neighboring houses, almost convinced they were watching from behind curtained windows, or cracked front doors. He didn't answer. She knocked again before turning around to see a woman openly gaping at her. Inside she panicked for a moment, looking down at her hands to make sure she hadn't turned her skin blue. The last thing she needed was the Ministry involved. She checked several times before she was sure she hadn't changed anything to an abnormal shade of the rainbow. Lenore frowned, wondering why they were gaping so, but waved to the woman none the less. The middle aged, curly haired woman dropped her water hose and all but ran to her front door. Lenore just shrugged and knocked again, nearly about to give up and head home.

"Come in!" she heard the order from inside the house and she promptly turned around, startled. She slowly opened the front door and slipped inside. She shut the door behind her and blinked in the darkness, her eyes straining to adjust.

"It's Lenore from Flitterbloom's!" She called out as she rubbed her eyes.

"Kitchen!" the voice called back.

"Well I would be there if I could see!" she mumbled under her breath. Finally she could start to see shadows that resembled couches, and a large fireplace. The windows on the far side of the room were completely blacked out, bathing the room in an almost pitch black darkness. She looked around and saw a small thin beam of light on the floor and she crossed the room, nearly bumping into every piece of furniture on her way. She came to the door and opened it just as slowly as she had the front door, blinking at the intrusion of light. She squinted through the light as she peeked her head around the door for a moment before realizing she had indeed found the right room. The Professor stood by a kitchen island, a cauldron bubbling ominously in the center of it.

"Come in and shut the door." his sharp tone elicited her obedience, and the door shut with a soft click behind her. "Sit." he pointed to a stool in the corner of the room, and she made her way over to it, careful to stay out of his way and not knock anything over. She climbed onto the rickety, off balanced wooden chair and made herself sit there quietly. As bad as she wanted to open drawers and cabinets, to discover how his stocks were in relation to hers, she forced her hands to rest in her lap. "I'll be only a moment longer." he murmured before reaching for a bottle of what looked like yellow sludge and pouring an unknown amount into the bright purple bubbling liquid.

"Take your time." Lenore responded. The Professor was wearing a black robe, similar to the one she had first seen him in, if he wore shoes, Lenore could not see, nor hear them. His black hair hung around his face, shielding him from her view. Occasionally she would catch glimpses of his face, his eyes narrowed in concentration as he poured something else into the pewter cauldron, or as he stirred the liquid in the cauldron. Lenore watched carefully, racking her brain for the recipe he was making. She was frowning, watching his hands as he added crushed Pufferfish eyes. It had been an Awakening potion up until then, she was sure. She was so focused on his hands and the herbs he was adding, she hadn't noticed him look at her.

"Have you figured out what it is yet?" he asked indifferently as he turned around to grab his silver ladle off of the counter.

"I thought an Awakening draught of some kind, but now I'm not sure..." she trailed off, biting her lip as she kept racking her brain for an answer.

"A logical assumption." he began stirring clockwise.

"I can't figure it out." she scratched her chin before biting her lip again. "Not a healing anything that I know of..." she thought aloud.

"It is in fact an Awakening draught." He said as he stopped stirring and set the silver ladle on the counter.

"With Pufferfish?" Lenore's eyes grew wide.

"Yes, with Pufferfish, it's a much higher strength." he turned around and grabbed his wand from the herb covered counter. With a flick of his wrist the brew went from boiling to simmering.

"I would have never thought to add..." Lenore drifted off and began thinking of her own potion experiments at home. Snape stashed his wand away before turning to Lenore. "You have the Nux Myristica I assume." he opened a drawer and pulled out a few coins as Lenore shrugged off her backpack, still in a half daze of her own thoughts. Lenore unzipped her bag carefully before withdrawing the bundled herb and holding it out to him. He crossed the room and took the thick bundle from her before pressing the few coins into her hand. She began to protest, but one sharp look from him silenced her voice in her throat.

"I will need several stones of Bezoar soon." he turned away and went back to stirring the purple liquid that had darkened considerably.

"I think I have some. I'll have to check, but I can get them too you maybe as early as tomorrow." Lenore zipped her bag back up before slinging it back on to her shoulders.

"I will need at least three." He set the ladle down again before turning to a row of bottled ingredients she hadn't noticed before.

"Should I stop by at a certain time or-" he cut her off.

"Any time is adequate." his tone had been indifferent up until now, and he was focusing rather hard now.

"Alright, well I'll stop by tomorrow. Goodnight." she hopped off of her seat and headed towards the kitchen door, careful not to hit anything, and to stay out of his way.

"Goodnight." he mumbled after her as she walked out of the room, shutting the door quietly behind her.

"Ouch!" he heard her yelp in the living room. He turned his head slightly as he heard her mutter some profane language before mumbling something similar to a quiet apology. A small semblance of a smile crossed his lips before he forced it away with his usual scowl, shaking his head.

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**As always thanks for reading, comments, praise, hate mail and the likes are always appreciated. So drop a line if you are up to it. Enjoy your week! **


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